Ministry looks to address alcohol abuse

The Ministry of Health has submitted a national policy on preventing
alcohol abuse to the Prime Minister for approval as health experts warn
that alcohol abuse could take a devastating toll on future generations.

Under
the policy, both beer and hard alcohol would be taxed more heavily,
people would not be allowed to buy alcohol of any sort after 10pm and
alcohol and beer trading businesses would be banned from hiring
employees under 18 years of age.

Schools would be also asked to include information on alcohol’s harmful effects in the curriculum.

A
national steering committee on preventing alcohol abuse will be set up
with the participation of relevant ministries, such as health, industry,
and trade and public security.

Drinking consistently and
heavily for many years affects both the quantity and quality of a man's
sperm, said Dr. To Vinh Ninh from the HCM City-based Gia Dinh People's
Hospital.

Not only does alcohol damage liver cells that make
protein during the sperm production process – "directly causing
sterility" – but it also heightens the risk that children will suffer
from mental and developmental disorders.

Ninh said about 45
percent of the childless couples who came to the hospital's Germ
Technology Centre for treatment were there because the husband was an
alcohol abuser.

About 35-40 percent of former male drinkers can
father children, he added, although they would have to undergo a
strenuous treatment lasting four to five years.

The amount of
alcohol and beer consumed by people over 15 has more than doubled since
the early 2000s, from 1.6 litres of alcohol and 10.4 litres of beer per
month in 2000 to 4.1 litres of alcohol and 22 litres of beer per month
in 2008, according to a Ministry of Health report.

In 2002, 46
percent of males and 1.9 percent of females in the country reported
drinking alcohol; however, by 2008, that rate increased to 79.9 percent
and 36.5 percent, respectively.

The report also said that 60
percent of domestic violence cases and 6 percent of accidents were
caused by drunk men. Moreover, as many as 15 percent of sick beds in
mental hospitals were occupied by people suffering from neurosis caused
by alcohol abuse.-VNA